DC Velocity - January 2009

The only sure thing about a 2009 forecast is that the person delivering it is certain to look like a bobble-head doll with head turning and shoulders shrugging in response to their frustrating lack of confidence. We are no different and have stopped trying to develop a big picture vision for the coming year. However, we truly feel pretty good about our prospects for the coming months.

Our customer base spreads across manufacturing, throughout warehousing and into the back rooms of retail. Applying our products in any of these environments dramatically improves the productivity of the workers while improving the safety of their work environment. Our products are low dollar investments that typically pay for themselves in well less than a year on productivity gains alone.

No matter how good or bad 2009 proves to be, companies planning to survive are going to be looking to remodel their operations in order to optimize efficiency. We can help do that even under the skimpiest of CapEx budgets. Companies looking to “lean” their operations have been discovering just how much wasted motion our products are taking out of a work cell…not to mention the terrible waste involved in worker’s compensation costs. Companies hiring are going to be looking to get the most out of these new investments and if we can bring double digit productivity improvements for single digit investments (as a percent of annual compensation), our products are easily justified. This justification only becomes easier for companies that are contracting, as they really need to get more from the employees who remain…and not only do our products help bottom lines but employees love to use them as well.

All we know about next year is that 2009 will come and go…but regardless of how it tracks, we expect to do well because of the benefits our products bring to the most critical business issues of the coming year. Like all the difficult times that have come before, 2009 presents great opportunity for those willing to pursue it.